President Donald Trump has ‘put people’s lives at risk’ with his decision to stage a drive-by outside the hospital where he is being treated for Co vid-19.
“Every single person in the vehicle during that completely unnecessary Presidential ‘drive-by’ just now has to be quarantined for 14 days. They might get sick. They may die. For political theatre. Commanded by Trump to put their lives at risk for theatre. This is insanity,” . Dr. James Phillips tweeted. He is a Walter Reed physician.
Dr. Phillips, who is the Chief of Disaster and Operational Medicine at George Washington University as well as a CNN medical analyst, said Trump’s ride outside Walter Reed National Military Medical Center was irresponsible.
The stunt was just the latest example of Trump and his inner circle flouting public health recommendations. The President and those closest to him have repeatedly failed to wear masks when mandatory, practice social distancing and abide by the quarantine rules set out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yesterday’s episode shows there’s no indication that Trump’s hospitalization is changing his approach to the pandemic.
“That Presidential SUV is not only bulletproof, but hermetically sealed against chemical attack. The risk of Covid-19 transmission inside is as high as it gets outside of medical procedures,” he explained.
Despite the risk posed to others in the hospital, the driver and security staff, White House spokesman Judd Deere said that “the movement was cleared by the medical team as safe to do” and that “appropriate precautions” were taken, “including PPE.
At least 10 people in the President’s vicinity have recently tested positive. Some 7.4 million Americans — roughly one in 44 — have been infected with the virus in the world’s worst-affected country.
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